1888 N29 Allen & Ginter Trading Cards

1888 N29 Allen & Ginter marked the second straight year the tobacco company issued a 50-card World Champions set in its cigarette packages. Though a similar format was used with both sets, there are enough differences to tell the two sets apart.

Fronts feature a similar design and size, with a lithographed painting of an athlete fading into a solid white background. Elements related to the sport the athlete plays are incorporated on some of the cards. However, this time there is no Allen & Ginter ad on the front and more information than a simple name is given. Backs feature a full checklist of 50 cards broken down by each sport. This time, the Allen & Ginter ad has been added to the bottom.

As with N28 cards, the 50 images from 1888 N29 Allen & Ginter were placed into a paper album that was available as a premium from the tobacco company. Also, large-size cards that add to each of the regular cards were made into a separate series known as N43.

This set of World's Champions features many different subjects who weren't in the N28 series. Only two wrestlers are repeated. As a result, there is little overlap between the two sets. Additionally, there are more sports represented in 1888 N29 Allen & Ginter when compared to the N28 set. There are runners, cyclists, pedestrians, hammer throwers, pole vaulters, high jumpers and weight lifters, making it a set more devoted to track and field events. 1888 N29 Allen & Ginter has just six baseball players. Of them, only Buck Ewing eventually made the Hall of Fame. This has kept some of the demand for these cards down. However, 1888 N29 Allen & Ginter is a little scarcer than N28 so its lower relative popularity is offset by a lower supply.